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شاطئ العناق
For years, no one had dared to set foot on Sullivan's Reef, the beautiful Caribbean island with the sinister reputation. When Charlotte Martin went in search for the truth about Sullivan's Reef, she encountered an attractive stranger who was as mysterious - and perhaps more dangerous - than the Reef itself.
- GenresHarlequin Romance
155 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1970
60 people want to read
About the author
Anne Weale
218 books49 followersJay Blakeney
aka Anne Weale, Andrea Blake
Jay Blakeney was born on Juny 20, 1929. Her great-grandfather was a well-known writer on moral theology, so perhaps she inherited her writing gene from him. She was "talking stories" to herself long before she could read. When she was still at school, she sold her first short stories to a woman's magazine and she feels she was destined to write. Decided to became a writer, she started writing for newspapers and magazines.
At 21, Jay was a newspaper reporter with a career plan, but the man she was wildly in love with announced that he was off to the other side of the world. He thought they should either marry or say goodbye. She always believed that true love could last a lifetime, and she felt that wonderful men were much harder to find than good jobs, so she put her career on hold. What a wise decision it was! She felt that new young women seem less inclined to risk everything for love than her generation.
Together they traveled the world. If she hadn't spent part of her bridal year living on the edge of a jungle in Malaysia, she might never have become a romance writer. That isolated house, and the perils of the state of emergency that existed in the country at that time, gave her a background and plot ideally suited to a genre she had never read until she came across some romances in the library of a country club they sometimes visited. She can write about love with the even stronger conviction that comes from experience.
When they returned to Europe, Jay resumed her career as a journalist, writing her first romance in her spare time. She sold her first novel as Anne Weale to Mills and Boon in 1955 at the age of 24. At 30, with seven books published, she "retired" to have a baby and become a full-time writer. She raised a delightful son, David, who is as adventurous as his father. Her husband and son have even climbed in the Andes and the Himalayas, giving her lots of ideas for stories. When she retired from reporting, her fiction income -- a combination of amounts earned as a Mills & Boon author and writing for magazines such as Woman's Illustrated, which serialized the work of authors -- exceed 1,000 pounds a year.
She was a founding member of the The Romantic Novelists' Association. In 2002 she published her last novel, in total, she wrote 88 novels. She also wrote under the pseudonym Andrea Blake. She loved setting her novels in exotic parts of the world, but specially in The Caribbean and in her beloved Spain. Since 1989, Jay spent most of the winter months in a very small "pueblo" in the backwoods of Spain. During years, she visited some villages, and from each she have borrowed some feature - a fountain, a street, a plaza, a picturesque old house - to create some places like Valdecarrasca, that is wholly imaginary and yet typical of the part of rural Spain she knew best. She loved walking, reading, sketching, sewing (curtains and slipcovers) and doing needlepoint, gardening, entertaining friends, visiting art galleries and museums, writing letters, surfing the Net, traveling in search of exciting locations for future books, eating delicious food and drinking good wine, cataloguing her books.
She wrote a regular website review column for The Bookseller from 1998 to 2004, before starting her own blog Bookworm on the Net. At the time of her death, on October 24, 2007, she was working on her autobiography "88 Heroes... 1 Mr. Right".
aka Anne Weale, Andrea Blake
Jay Blakeney was born on Juny 20, 1929. Her great-grandfather was a well-known writer on moral theology, so perhaps she inherited her writing gene from him. She was "talking stories" to herself long before she could read. When she was still at school, she sold her first short stories to a woman's magazine and she feels she was destined to write. Decided to became a writer, she started writing for newspapers and magazines.
At 21, Jay was a newspaper reporter with a career plan, but the man she was wildly in love with announced that he was off to the other side of the world. He thought they should either marry or say goodbye. She always believed that true love could last a lifetime, and she felt that wonderful men were much harder to find than good jobs, so she put her career on hold. What a wise decision it was! She felt that new young women seem less inclined to risk everything for love than her generation.
Together they traveled the world. If she hadn't spent part of her bridal year living on the edge of a jungle in Malaysia, she might never have become a romance writer. That isolated house, and the perils of the state of emergency that existed in the country at that time, gave her a background and plot ideally suited to a genre she had never read until she came across some romances in the library of a country club they sometimes visited. She can write about love with the even stronger conviction that comes from experience.
When they returned to Europe, Jay resumed her career as a journalist, writing her first romance in her spare time. She sold her first novel as Anne Weale to Mills and Boon in 1955 at the age of 24. At 30, with seven books published, she "retired" to have a baby and become a full-time writer. She raised a delightful son, David, who is as adventurous as his father. Her husband and son have even climbed in the Andes and the Himalayas, giving her lots of ideas for stories. When she retired from reporting, her fiction income -- a combination of amounts earned as a Mills & Boon author and writing for magazines such as Woman's Illustrated, which serialized the work of authors -- exceed 1,000 pounds a year.
She was a founding member of the The Romantic Novelists' Association. In 2002 she published her last novel, in total, she wrote 88 novels. She also wrote under the pseudonym Andrea Blake. She loved setting her novels in exotic parts of the world, but specially in The Caribbean and in her beloved Spain. Since 1989, Jay spent most of the winter months in a very small "pueblo" in the backwoods of Spain. During years, she visited some villages, and from each she have borrowed some feature - a fountain, a street, a plaza, a picturesque old house - to create some places like Valdecarrasca, that is wholly imaginary and yet typical of the part of rural Spain she knew best. She loved walking, reading, sketching, sewing (curtains and slipcovers) and doing needlepoint, gardening, entertaining friends, visiting art galleries and museums, writing letters, surfing the Net, traveling in search of exciting locations for future books, eating delicious food and drinking good wine, cataloguing her books.
She wrote a regular website review column for The Bookseller from 1998 to 2004, before starting her own blog Bookworm on the Net. At the time of her death, on October 24, 2007, she was working on her autobiography "88 Heroes... 1 Mr. Right".
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 29, 2024
Dude kisses heroine, heroine' sister and OW, ALL on the same day. No, no, no, and no.
December 16, 2015
4 Stars ~ Having holidayed in the Bahamas where I often had a gorgeous beach to myself, this story about a girl's secret excursion to a secluded island reached out to me.
The story opens with 22 year old Charlotte on the eve of her return to her beloved island and worried that she's making a horrible mistake. When she'd moved at 18 to London, she'd set a goal of four years to scrimp and save to make the trip, and in those four years to grow up. She needed to show the man she'd fallen in love with at 17, that she was no longer a child and had a woman's love to offer. As she worries about the trip, she tells her roommate about her past life in the Bahamas, something she's always kept guarded in her heart. And the story flashes back to Charlotte's first meeting with Liam.
The island known as Sullivan's Reef had been abandoned for 20 years and the locals claimed it was haunted and taboo to go there. Charlotte's family lived not far from the island and her adventurous nature took her there. She'd been surprised to find hidden in tropic jungle a beautiful stone mansion and what had once been gardens and terraces. Hating that the jungle was taking over the house, Charlotte spent hours cutting back vines and tree limbs. She daydreamed of one day owning the island and restoring it to it's glory. One day a strange man intrudes; Liam. Charlotte thinks Liam is just a passing tourist staying with friends on a luxury yacht. Liam's charmed by this young beauty, and he flirts with Charlotte, but when he kisses her he realizes she's very young and she admits she's only 16 to his 35. Something about Liam draws Charlotte, and even learning of his playboy reputation and self-indulgent lifestyle, she finds herself falling in love with him. She discovers him in residence on "her" island, and working hard at taming the jungle from the house, and she's shocked to learn that he's the owner by inheritance and plans to stay. When Charlotte's father dies suddenly, leaving her mother with five children and only the property to their name, Liam offers them a solution. He wants them to move to Sullivan's Reef and help him get his home ready to open, as a guest house. They'll all have a place to live and means of support and help Liam, whose own funds are quickly disappearing in the expense of renovating the house. Charlotte, now 17, hates the idea of strangers coming to the island, but resigns herself that at least this way she can be close to Liam. But Liam seems to have time for everyone in her family except for her, in fact, he finds an excuse never to be alone with her. As the hotel opens is becomes successful, Liam continues to make changes to add to it's appeal. Charlotte's mother meets an old friend from days before she was married who is staying in another hotel recovering from an illness. They become close again and it isn't any surprise to Charlotte or her siblings when their mother asks them if it's alright for her to remarry and move them all to Scotland. Though thrilled for her mother, Charlotte doesn't want to go, and on the eve of saying goodbye to Sullivan's Reef, she appeals to Liam to let her stay, declaring her love for him. He rejects her brutally, telling her that she's just a child and first love, though painful, passes quickly, and that he could never love her in return. It's not until the plane is about to land in England, that Charlotte realizes that he may have been putting on an act, and that's when she forms her plan to one day return to the island to find out.
Ms. Weale drew me in from the first pages. Though very young for much of the story, Charlotte doesn't come over as immature or self-absorbed as most teenagers tend to be. Like most women, that bit of bad boy in Liam is appealing to her but she sees the goodness in him too and shows him that he has potential to change his life. Liam is scarred from his childhood and has lead a life that he now sees as wasted and regrets many of the choices he'd made. He doesn't feel worthy of Charlotte, and even on her return to him as a mature woman, he thinks she's out of reach. This is a lovely sweet romance set in a locale that has a bit of my own heart. I enjoyed a trip down memory lane of what it feels like to be the sole person on a pristine beach with the Caribbean sun warm on your face.
The story opens with 22 year old Charlotte on the eve of her return to her beloved island and worried that she's making a horrible mistake. When she'd moved at 18 to London, she'd set a goal of four years to scrimp and save to make the trip, and in those four years to grow up. She needed to show the man she'd fallen in love with at 17, that she was no longer a child and had a woman's love to offer. As she worries about the trip, she tells her roommate about her past life in the Bahamas, something she's always kept guarded in her heart. And the story flashes back to Charlotte's first meeting with Liam.
The island known as Sullivan's Reef had been abandoned for 20 years and the locals claimed it was haunted and taboo to go there. Charlotte's family lived not far from the island and her adventurous nature took her there. She'd been surprised to find hidden in tropic jungle a beautiful stone mansion and what had once been gardens and terraces. Hating that the jungle was taking over the house, Charlotte spent hours cutting back vines and tree limbs. She daydreamed of one day owning the island and restoring it to it's glory. One day a strange man intrudes; Liam. Charlotte thinks Liam is just a passing tourist staying with friends on a luxury yacht. Liam's charmed by this young beauty, and he flirts with Charlotte, but when he kisses her he realizes she's very young and she admits she's only 16 to his 35. Something about Liam draws Charlotte, and even learning of his playboy reputation and self-indulgent lifestyle, she finds herself falling in love with him. She discovers him in residence on "her" island, and working hard at taming the jungle from the house, and she's shocked to learn that he's the owner by inheritance and plans to stay. When Charlotte's father dies suddenly, leaving her mother with five children and only the property to their name, Liam offers them a solution. He wants them to move to Sullivan's Reef and help him get his home ready to open, as a guest house. They'll all have a place to live and means of support and help Liam, whose own funds are quickly disappearing in the expense of renovating the house. Charlotte, now 17, hates the idea of strangers coming to the island, but resigns herself that at least this way she can be close to Liam. But Liam seems to have time for everyone in her family except for her, in fact, he finds an excuse never to be alone with her. As the hotel opens is becomes successful, Liam continues to make changes to add to it's appeal. Charlotte's mother meets an old friend from days before she was married who is staying in another hotel recovering from an illness. They become close again and it isn't any surprise to Charlotte or her siblings when their mother asks them if it's alright for her to remarry and move them all to Scotland. Though thrilled for her mother, Charlotte doesn't want to go, and on the eve of saying goodbye to Sullivan's Reef, she appeals to Liam to let her stay, declaring her love for him. He rejects her brutally, telling her that she's just a child and first love, though painful, passes quickly, and that he could never love her in return. It's not until the plane is about to land in England, that Charlotte realizes that he may have been putting on an act, and that's when she forms her plan to one day return to the island to find out.
Ms. Weale drew me in from the first pages. Though very young for much of the story, Charlotte doesn't come over as immature or self-absorbed as most teenagers tend to be. Like most women, that bit of bad boy in Liam is appealing to her but she sees the goodness in him too and shows him that he has potential to change his life. Liam is scarred from his childhood and has lead a life that he now sees as wasted and regrets many of the choices he'd made. He doesn't feel worthy of Charlotte, and even on her return to him as a mature woman, he thinks she's out of reach. This is a lovely sweet romance set in a locale that has a bit of my own heart. I enjoyed a trip down memory lane of what it feels like to be the sole person on a pristine beach with the Caribbean sun warm on your face.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 25, 2021
Loved it ! Kept me hooked from start to end.
These 'young heroine coming of age' stories can either turn out to be absolutely crass or in some cases, sensitive warm portrayals. This one belonged to the latter category.
Our girl Charlotte is an islander, cocooned, lived in a small island in the West Indies. Strict but genius dad. Simple housewifey mom. Plump, naive and eager-to-see-the-world-outside elder sister. 3 bratty younger brothers. And then there's 16 year old brave, adventurous, caring, unwittingly sexy, unawakened Charlotte.
Her big dream in life. There's a derelict beach side bungalow in one of the abandoned nearby islands. She loves the place like crazy, she hopes to grow up and own it. Prepared to work hard to buy it, and restore it to its deserving glory.
Her plans come a cropper when she finds a virile attractive man lounging in the bungalow during one our her secret visits to the place. That's our hero Liam. He's the owner of her dream bungalow. He is 32, a debauched loner, just floating around without a purpose in life. Loose with women, no career to speak out. Just hopeless...
So what's the redeeming thing about him?!? He has realised the meaninglessness of his derelict lifestyle. As is the tradition, we find in this tale too - the reformed rakes make the best heroes and husbands !! I totally loved Liam's journey from absolute debauchery to become a hard working, selfless and a heroic character.
Charlotte's first 2-3 meetings with Liam are enough for him to pull out of his morass of living. She takes him at face value, asks him direct questions, jolts him to rethink. When she finds him with his 'lady friend' she asks point blank "How can go around with such obnoxious people", "Why don't you find a worthwhile career?" and so on. She even gives him career tips ;)))
In return, he gives her her first kiss (which she likes !) and he also gives a kiss to her sister the same day (she goes yeuwww , I hated it). All for educational, coming of age purposes, strictly in the 'just to douse your curiosity' category. He did not come across as amoral, just a tad mischievous ;))
Within days of meeting Charlotte, he is charmed, just bowled over. During the HEA confession, he says "I would have sold my soul to become a 20 year old, and have a normal relationship with you" instead of being an old, world weary 32 year old.
But that's not to be. So from there starts his hard journey of restraint. He helps out Charlotte's mother when her father dies of a sudden illness. He takes the entire family on board his island, coverts it into a hotel. Gives everybody work, shelter, and a decent living. They in turn make a proxy family for him. All this he does while maintaining a careful semi-guardian, semi-friend approach with Charlotte. Which frustrates her to no end.
But she is growing up. And he is watching her grow up, go on a first date, buying her first party dress. It gets tougher and tougher for him to conceal his love for the girl-woman that she is.
When things get to a head, he stages a scene, paints himself as just a good time guy. And forces Charlotte out into the world. To discover life for herself, to grow up.
That she comes back to him after 4 years of growing up. While he selflessly let the butterfly out its cocoon, forms the best part of the story. She is back, he is a total goner this time. Passions rise, words tumble out. Love is out in the open. All is well.
While Charlotte's love for Liam is clear to the readers throughout the story, the depth of his love for her is packed into the last few pages, quite a punch.
Lovely story using the risky, controversial older guy, young girl trope. Spanning years, sucks the read into their lives.
These 'young heroine coming of age' stories can either turn out to be absolutely crass or in some cases, sensitive warm portrayals. This one belonged to the latter category.
Our girl Charlotte is an islander, cocooned, lived in a small island in the West Indies. Strict but genius dad. Simple housewifey mom. Plump, naive and eager-to-see-the-world-outside elder sister. 3 bratty younger brothers. And then there's 16 year old brave, adventurous, caring, unwittingly sexy, unawakened Charlotte.
Her big dream in life. There's a derelict beach side bungalow in one of the abandoned nearby islands. She loves the place like crazy, she hopes to grow up and own it. Prepared to work hard to buy it, and restore it to its deserving glory.
Her plans come a cropper when she finds a virile attractive man lounging in the bungalow during one our her secret visits to the place. That's our hero Liam. He's the owner of her dream bungalow. He is 32, a debauched loner, just floating around without a purpose in life. Loose with women, no career to speak out. Just hopeless...
So what's the redeeming thing about him?!? He has realised the meaninglessness of his derelict lifestyle. As is the tradition, we find in this tale too - the reformed rakes make the best heroes and husbands !! I totally loved Liam's journey from absolute debauchery to become a hard working, selfless and a heroic character.
Charlotte's first 2-3 meetings with Liam are enough for him to pull out of his morass of living. She takes him at face value, asks him direct questions, jolts him to rethink. When she finds him with his 'lady friend' she asks point blank "How can go around with such obnoxious people", "Why don't you find a worthwhile career?" and so on. She even gives him career tips ;)))
In return, he gives her her first kiss (which she likes !) and he also gives a kiss to her sister the same day (she goes yeuwww , I hated it). All for educational, coming of age purposes, strictly in the 'just to douse your curiosity' category. He did not come across as amoral, just a tad mischievous ;))
Within days of meeting Charlotte, he is charmed, just bowled over. During the HEA confession, he says "I would have sold my soul to become a 20 year old, and have a normal relationship with you" instead of being an old, world weary 32 year old.
But that's not to be. So from there starts his hard journey of restraint. He helps out Charlotte's mother when her father dies of a sudden illness. He takes the entire family on board his island, coverts it into a hotel. Gives everybody work, shelter, and a decent living. They in turn make a proxy family for him. All this he does while maintaining a careful semi-guardian, semi-friend approach with Charlotte. Which frustrates her to no end.
But she is growing up. And he is watching her grow up, go on a first date, buying her first party dress. It gets tougher and tougher for him to conceal his love for the girl-woman that she is.
When things get to a head, he stages a scene, paints himself as just a good time guy. And forces Charlotte out into the world. To discover life for herself, to grow up.
That she comes back to him after 4 years of growing up. While he selflessly let the butterfly out its cocoon, forms the best part of the story. She is back, he is a total goner this time. Passions rise, words tumble out. Love is out in the open. All is well.
While Charlotte's love for Liam is clear to the readers throughout the story, the depth of his love for her is packed into the last few pages, quite a punch.
Lovely story using the risky, controversial older guy, young girl trope. Spanning years, sucks the read into their lives.
April 7, 2022
Charlotte Martin ha 16 anni e vive in un’isoletta nel mar dei Caraibi da quando ne aveva quattro, è casa sua, il posto che preferisce al mondo.
Per puro caso ha trovato un’isola nascosta con una grande casa e presto saprà che è luogo di un terribile omicidio ma non si fa scoraggiare, non pensa come i locali che il posto è infestato da fantasmi.
Così, ogni mese, si reca sull’isoletta.
Un giorno però durante la solita escursione incontra un uomo affascinante.
L’uomo è Liam Hamilton, proprietario dell’isola.
Questo libro, a parte l’ambientazione da sogno, è proprio vuoto.
Parla di questa ragazzina di 16 anni che perde la testa per un uomo di 32.
A 18 anni è costretta a lasciare i Caraibi per trasferirsi in Scozia, lei non vuole. Pianti lamentele, confessioni d’amore strappalacrime e Liam che la prende addirittura in giro per il suo amore.
A 22 decide di tornare per una vacanza e capire se prova ancora lo stesso sentimento e SBAAAM nulla è cambiato e viene a scoprire che lui la ama da quando ha 16 anni.
Mah, abbastanza banalotto. Scusa scema per ogni age gap, lui aspetta di confessarsi almeno alla maggiore età della fanciulla.
Lo perdono solo perché erano gli anni 70.
Una cosa che mi ha ucciso sono stati i capitoli terribilmente lunghi, su un libro di quasi 200 pagine ogni capitolo era almeno 20, sembrava non finissero più.
Per puro caso ha trovato un’isola nascosta con una grande casa e presto saprà che è luogo di un terribile omicidio ma non si fa scoraggiare, non pensa come i locali che il posto è infestato da fantasmi.
Così, ogni mese, si reca sull’isoletta.
Un giorno però durante la solita escursione incontra un uomo affascinante.
L’uomo è Liam Hamilton, proprietario dell’isola.
Questo libro, a parte l’ambientazione da sogno, è proprio vuoto.
Parla di questa ragazzina di 16 anni che perde la testa per un uomo di 32.
A 18 anni è costretta a lasciare i Caraibi per trasferirsi in Scozia, lei non vuole. Pianti lamentele, confessioni d’amore strappalacrime e Liam che la prende addirittura in giro per il suo amore.
A 22 decide di tornare per una vacanza e capire se prova ancora lo stesso sentimento e SBAAAM nulla è cambiato e viene a scoprire che lui la ama da quando ha 16 anni.
Mah, abbastanza banalotto. Scusa scema per ogni age gap, lui aspetta di confessarsi almeno alla maggiore età della fanciulla.
Lo perdono solo perché erano gli anni 70.
Una cosa che mi ha ucciso sono stati i capitoli terribilmente lunghi, su un libro di quasi 200 pagine ogni capitolo era almeno 20, sembrava non finissero più.
pback-to-read
June 1, 2021For years, no one had dared to set foot on Sullivan's Reef, the beautiful Caribbean island with the sinister reputation. When Charlotte Martin went in search for the truth about Sullivan's Reef, she encountered an attractive stranger who was as mysterious - and perhaps more dangerous - than the Reef itself
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February 20, 2022Chary in the end take what she wont.But why after all thos years.How make him her .For somtime i think that he will take her ses.And dîstroy her innocent.
May 5, 2022
رقيقة
February 28, 2023
أفضل رواية حب قرأتها❤
June 7, 2013
رواية جميلة وأعجبتني مترجمة للعربية "شاطئ العناق"
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews